The Avatar, or not?
by DustyBlackRose
Summary: What if Aang wasn't the avatar? He only said he was after other people had said it for him, maybe he was covering for someone? When the real avatar get's captured by Zuko who still thinks Aang is the avatar, how do they fare? Are they ever going to see their friends again, or are they doomed to stay a prisoner forever? :P x Zuko x OC rated T for language
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, it's my first fanfic and well...ye...I just hope you enjoy really. :P x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar the last airbender. At all.**

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As Katara hit the block of ice once more it split throwing out trapped air into her, Sokka threw his arm around her and dropped to the ground. The tan-skinned siblings looked up again to see that the top half of the block was missing and a small bald boy standing on the top of the ice. Katara ran forward as he fell and caught him in her arms, he opened his eyes and saw her there. To him, she was the most beautiful person he had ever seen, he could have stayed there in her arms forever were it not for the load shout that came from inside the hollow ice a moment later.

"Aang! Help! I'm stuck!" Aang suddenly jumped up with a little help from his airbending powers. Sokka and Katara stared at him like he was an alien as he ran round to the other side of the huge lump of ice. They followed after him and saw a girl with long ginger hair and dark crimson eyes trapped under some ice with only her head sticking out. Sokka laughed as he saw her but Katara hit him making him stop and ran to help the young airbender get his friend out.

"Hey, Katara! What are you doing? They could be fire nation spies!" He said pointing at them for dramatic effect. The ginger girl scoffed.

"Ye, of course, because a spy would obviously be stuck under a piece of ice and just shouting her presence out to everyone around." She said her voice dripping with sarcasm, Aang smirked and Katara had to bit her lip to keep from laughing, she did have a very good point after all.

"Well, maybe! You could just be very bad spies!" The girl would have slapped her palm to her forehead if she could but seeing as she couldn't she sufficed by whacking her head on the hard ice below her.

"Wow. Just wow, you really are an idiot. I thought you were just being overly cautious but it was just your stupidity. God, what has this nation come too?" She asked looking up, this time Katara couldn't hold in her laughter at Sokka's red face, Aang had finnaly managed to push the ice off the girl and now that she was up you could see how tall she was. She was at least a foot taller than Sokka and must have been at least 15 years old.

"Thanks Aang, it took you long enough. So, where are we?" She asked, Aang went to speak then her realised that...well...he had no idea where they where. He could have guessed it was near a water tribe from all the ice and snow but they could have been anywhere in either the south or the north pole.

"I...erm...hey, where are we?" He said turning to the water-tribe siblings. The girl stepped forward and smiled.

"Hey, I'm Katara and this is Sokka. Right now, you're in the south pole, only a little while away from the southern water-tribe." Sokka frowned, he still didn't like that girl for making him look stupid. Aang smiled and ran over to a big cream blob of fur, Katara and Sokka stared at it, how they hadn't noticed it sooner was a mystery to them.

"Appa, get up!" The 'blob' rolled over and revealed 6 legs and two horns on his head, along with a arrow, much like the bald boys, on his head that followed down his back. The ginger climbed onto the saddle on Appa's back and Aang followed, he held out a hand to Katara. She smiled and grabbed on, he pulled her up and Sokka gaped at his younger sister.

"What are you doing?! They could be evil!"

"Of course, and we're also spies, ninjas, the avatar and hair-specialists." The ginger said as sarcastically possible to do so. Sokka scowled, it's official, she hated the girl. "And anyway," She continued; "How else are you going to get home? You're on a block of ice miles away from home with no boat." She smirked, Sokka sighed but then gave up and climbed onto Appa.

"Fine, but only because Katara might get into trouble." The teenager raised a brow at him and shook her head turning away.

*The southern water-tribe*

"Finally! It took you long enough, I thought that giant 'thing' was meant to fly?!" Sokka complained as he jumped off Appa, Aang scowled at him.

"He can fly! He is just tired, that's all." He defended. Katara ran into her village and was surrounded by a small crowd of people, she ushered Aang and the red-head towards them.

"Aang, this is the entire village. Entire village, Aang and...his friend." She said, the village smiled and Aang grinned, and bowed, his so called 'friend' did the same. "Now that I think about it, you never really did tell us you're name, and Aang didn't say it." Katara said frowning as she looked at the ginger teen. She looked down and gulped, she looked up and spoke.

"My name is Hotaru, it means firefly, I was born and raised in the fire kingdom. I was banished when they learnt I was a airbender, I don't like to speak about it, or say my own name." Hotaru said, Katara looked at her sadly, she slowly nodded and put her hand on Hotaru's shoulder.

"Sorry, do you mind if I give you a new name then?" Hotaru looked surprised but nodded smiling, she had never thought to having a new name and the thought of one now excited her. Katara frowned deep in thought, after a while she walked over to Aang and whispered into his ear, he grinned and nodded.

"Hotaru, you're new name shall be...Minoru! It means truth, so you can always remember it as your true name." The newly named Minoru grinned and hugged the younger bender.

"Thank you, so so much, that means a lot to me." She said, Katara smiled and looked over to where Aang was now showing the little children of the tribe how his tongue got stuck on his staff. Minoru laughed and Katara walked over to him, Minoru walked out of the village and went around the back, she started to practise her bending and she was, in her opinion, starting to get very good at it.

A few hours passed and she walked back into the village, she wiped the sweat off her brow and saw that everyone was gathered in a crowd, she walked over and saw Aang and Katara looking very guilty in the middle getting a good telling off from an old woman.

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault, I was the one who said we should go in." Aang said, Sokka stepped forward and poked him in the chest with the end of his club.

"Go, leave, the only thing you have caused us is trouble." He said, Aang looked heart broken but nodded and walked out, Katara went to follow after him but Aang told her to stop, Minoru could feel his pain, she knew how it felt to not be wanted anymore. She stayed where she was, and watched as he left on Appa.

Only a few minutes later they saw a huge fire nation ship coming up to the village, but it didn't stop, it crashed into the wall and broke it down, the entrance opened and out stepped the soldiers and they're leader. He walked into the middle of the village and stopped, Minoru glared at him from where she stood but said nothing, she knew better than to get on the fire nation's bad side. What he said next was the one thing that surprised her.

"Where is the avatar?!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, it's me, again, with the next chapter. Okay...hope you enjoy...onto the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar the last airbender.**

_Thoughts_

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"Where is the Avatar?!" The fire prince said, Minoru flinched. _No, how could they find us so fast, what did Aang do? _She thought, she jumped onto one of the roofs, as she was running she saw a glint of metal in the corner of her crimson eyes and caught a sword thrown up for her, she smiled down at the small girl below her. She saw a fire nation soldier just in front of her and was about to jump to jump and attack him when she heard a shout. Minoru stopped and turned to the direction of the sound, she saw Aang flying in on his glider. He landed next to her and his eyes widened, she was about to ask what was wrong but she didn't have time as she was suddenly blasted off the roof and falling into the cold snow beneath her. She stood and saw a burn mark on her leg. _That has got to leave a scar. _Minoru thought as she glared at the person before her, he looked smugly at her as she breathed deeply to keep her bending under control. His helmet had been knocked off sometime during the fight and she could clearly see his long black hair that was pulled back into a tight pony tail and his scar that ran across his left eye.

"Hello, might you be the avatar?" He said smirking, Minoru gulped, she certainly did look different. From her floor length ginger hair that was in a low pony tail and many freckles to her yellow skirt with orange rim and yellow and orange sleeveless shirt. All in all, she looked like a airbender, not that she wasn't, but she could have at least tried to hide it for these times. Just as she was about to speak Aang dropped down and stood between her and the fire nation prince. _What is with these people?! Do they just not want me to speak at all? _Minoru thought.

Aang stared at the fire nation soldier, he knew Minoru's secret and no-one, repeat, no-one was going to find out what it was unless it was desperately needed. "I'm the avatar, not her, she has nothing to do with this." He said, Zuko narrowed his eyes as Minoru widened hers. He wasn't so stupid, he knew that he was just covering for her, but that didn't mean that he thought she was the Avatar. _If there are more than one then there could be more, and the avatar. This girl, she looks weak, she couldn't possibly be the avatar, and the boy, he may look stronger but he is too young. I will take the girl as a hostage and use her to bring the avatar to me._

"Ok then, I'll leave, seeing as the real avatar isn't here." Zuko turned around and started walking back to his ship smirking inwardly, Aang sighed and flew away on his glider thinking that Zuko was going to be honest. Minoru, however, boiled with anger that Zuko just turned and left, did he not think they were strong, and what did he mean 'real avatar'? In a fit of blind rage she ran up to Zuko, who was now near the foot of his ship, and went to push him into the water with her bending when he turned suddenly and grabbed her hand preventing her to do so. Her eyes widened as he put his other hand near her face and set it alight, the red flames flickered dangerously close to her pale skin. He smirked.

"So, you're not the avatar, but maybe he will come get you back, and I don't mean the boy, we all know he isn't the avatar." Zuko said, Minoru's eyes got even wider, if possible, and she bit her lip. Seeing her pitiful reaction he quickly got handcuffs and put them on her, she looked over to where Aang was fighting off a soldier and hope he wouldn't see her. If her did, there was no telling what he would do.

"Minoru. Minoru!" Her worst fears came true as she heard Aang shouting her name from the other side of the village, Zuko heard this too and hastily dragged her onto his ship before the avatar could get to her, he called in his men and they set off. Zuko sent his prisoner up to his room with a soldier and he went to the deck. On there he found his uncle, an old grey haired man playing Sho Pai, he walked over to him and sat down on the other side of the table.

"Oh, Zuko, finally come to play a game with me have you?" He asked chuckling.

"No, Uncle, I have a way to capture the avatar. I have a girl, she is an airbender, but not the avatar, there are more airbenders than we all thought, we didn't wipe them all out." Zuko said, his Uncle frowned and rubbed his chin, finally he spoke.

"Well Zuko, good job I guess, if you think you can get the avatar this way then go ahead. What, might I ask, makes you think that this girl isn't the avatar?" Zuko looked surprised, but thought about it carefully, because, in truth, there was no reason for her to not be the avatar, she didn't show any of her bending.

"I don't know, she just...I just don't think she is." Zuko said frowning at himself for not giving a better reason, why couldn't he? She hadn't said she was or wasn't at all.

"So, the real reason is, you just don't _want _her to be the avatar?" General Iroh asked raising a brow, Zuko frowned harder. Was that true? Did he really just not want her to be the avatar? To be sent away as a prisoner, to be used as a prize, to be humiliated and killed publically? No, he didn't want that, not to her. The tall girl with fiery red hair, piercing crimson eyes that could see through your soul and the mysterious aura around her that just made you want to know more about her every second you spent near her. Zuko shook his head as he started to smile at the thought that the very same girl he was just thinking about was now at his mercy on his ship.

He walked back down into the ship and strait to his room, he turned the handle and tried to open the door when he realised he couldn't, he scowled and out his hand to the door and set it alight. The metal heated up and soon he heard a shout of pain and he could open the door. He shut the door behind him and saw her there, sitting on his bed, rubbing her back. As he moved towards her she moved away until she was at the edge of the bed, he glared at her. She just wouldn't stop moving would she? He sighed and reached out his hand to her, she moved back again and fell of the bed with a very sore thump. She winced when her back hit the ground and Zuko narrowed him eyes, he couldn't have hurt her that much could he?

Taking the chance, whilst the prince looked deep in thought, Minoru jumped up and sped towards the door, she got there and pulled on the handle just a moment too late as the next second she was pinned u against the door. One of Zuko's arms holding her hands above her face the other across her stomach, she held her breath. She saw the fire flickering in Zuko's amber eyes and bit her lip.

_Would she ever stop that? Didn't she know how cute she looked when she bit her lip like that? Wait...CUTE! When the hell did I ever start thinking she was cute? There has got to be something wrong with me. _Zuko thought as he stared at the girl in front of him, he unconsciously leaned in closer and stared to close his eyes. Their lips only millimetres apart he...

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**Dun dun duunnnnnn! Review if you want them to kiss or not!** **I'm happy either way. Hope you loved the chapter! Bye bye! :P x**

**~DBR**


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